Category Archives: Animal Rescue

If you have been to That Fish Place – That Pet Place within the last year, you may have noticed all of the different rescues that we have had come into showcase their organization. When we think of rescues, we typically think of cats and dogs, but we often forget about the other animals that are in need of loving homes as well. Like clockwork, our favorite bird man Alan Sipe has brought his own birds in on Saturday’s from 10am-2pm to help represent the Feathered Sanctuary out of Kirkwood. His own expertise, and the hands on experience that some folks have been lucky enough to experience help to establish what it takes to adopt a rescued bird. January is Adopt a Rescued Bird Month, and what better way to celebrate than to interview the birdman himself.

What does Feathered Sanctuary cover for adopting or fostering?
A certificate is given to adopters good for a free wellness check with Dr. Hall at VCA Bridgeport. Typically a cage comes with the bird. If one is not available, the adoption fee would be a lesser dollar amount. Range is from $5.00 to $600.00 and anywhere in between. Since we have a facility, we do not typically foster birds. On rare occasions we do foster special needs birds and food is provided by the rescue.

Is there a foster period? If there is difficulty getting a newly adopted bird settled into a new home we will work with that person.

How can I meet some of the adoptable birds? Stop in at our facility located at 1674 Kirkwood Pike in Kirkwood, PAQ, located just south of Quarryville.

Do you offer educational resources and/or classes? From time to time we do offer Birdie 101 introduction classes. Also, the knowledgeable staff at the rescue will answer questions.

What is a bird’s average life span? Canaries about 10-15 years, Cockatiels 15-30 years, Amazons 50-70 years and Macaws 50-80 years.

Can birds be left alone if I work or go to school? Yes….they do not require 24/7 attention. A few hours of interaction daily is plenty.

What does a bird cost on average a year? Food and toys could run anywhere between $150 a year for a small bird to $500 a year for a large Macaw!

What are some of the things that the rescue does daily? Volunteers clean cages & grates, vacuum floors, feed & water birds as well as get birds out to socialize.

How would I go about volunteering for Feathered Sanctuary? Stop by the rescue and fill out an application form for volunteering. Must be 16 or older to volunteer alone, but if younger you may volunteer accompanied by a responsible adult!

Are there any other ways that someone can help the Feathered Sanctuary? Monetary donations are always accepted, supplies such as large garbage bags, vacuum bags, paper towels, printer paper, printer ink and much more.

Where do these rescue birds come from? Birds may outlive their owners, life changes: divorce, newborn, residency move, career change, as well as neglect and/or abuse.

What is one of your happiest memories from volunteering at the rescue? An Umbrella Cockatoo named Angel came in to our rescue with a kicked in cage door and the owners saying the bird was aggressive and noisy. I discovered through interaction with the bird that it was docile and lovable. The poor scared baby was just misunderstood!

Thank you Alan for taking the time to answer all of our questions. If you would like to know more, feel free to reach out, and don’t forget to visit Alan at our store!

There’s nothing worse than losing a loved one. Let alone a loved one who doesn’t have a cell phone or really any clue on how to find their way back to the family they love. Unfortunately, that’s the reality you’re facing ever time your 4-legged friend hits the ground running outside. If you were to step back and ask the question – what can I do to offer the best chance that my pet finds his way back home in an emergency – and sure, not spend a ton of money in the process – your answer would be microchipping. So – without further delay – let’s look at 5 Reasons why you should have already microchipped your four-legged friend.

1. It’s a Lifetime Safety Net For Your Pet’s Security

You can’t really say that about anything else! Microchips are permanently embedded in your pet’s skin and made to last 25 years. That’s longer than any collar or tag, and it’s not about to fall off when your little escape artist crawls under that chain-link fence. The American Humane Association estimates over 10 million dogs and cats are lost or stolen every year – make sure you and your loved ones are prepared.

2. It Doesn’t Hurt Much

Your pet is used to vaccinations – and microchipping feels similar. Your veterinarian will simply use a needle to insert a small, grain-sized chip between your pet’s shoulder blades. A shot for a lifetime of security is a fair tradeoff.

3. Microchipping Works – We Have the Stats to Prove It

The American Veterinary Medical Association conducted a survey that said stray dogs at shelters WITHOUT a microchip were returned to their owners 21.9% of the time. That number increased to 52.2% when the dog was microchipped. To put that another way – it went from a 1 in 5 chance to greater than a 1 in 2. Similarly, cats without microchips were only returned 1.8% of the time, while cats WITH microchips were returned an amazing 38.5% of the time. Again, a 1 out of 50 chance changed to a 1 in 3. Microchipping has been so successful, that both England and Scotland have recently made it mandatory.

4. It’s Inexpensive

Compared to the other costs associated with owning a dog a microchip is barely an expense at all. In fact, many animal rescues, clinics, pet stores and veterinarians offer low-cost microchipping services all of the time. Not to put a cost on a lifetime of security and peace of mind, but you’re really only looking at $10 to $40 dollars per animal. In addition, though you should check the chip from time-to-time, they do not require batteries and have a lifespan of 25 years. This means there’s little to no upkeep cost. Awesome!

5. There’s No Better Feeling Than The Love Of An Animal!

As if you needed any more encouragement – here are a few amazing videos of pets being returned to their owners because of microchipping. Warning – you may want to have tissues handy!

Hello, my name is Tricia K. I currently own 3 cats, Bubba is 5, Firefly (aka Bug) is 3, and Scrappy is 7/8 months old. I have been volunteering for a rescue called “Lost Paws of Lancaster” for about 3 years, fostering for about 2 years. I have worked at That Fish Place – That Pet Place for almost 2 years as a cashier. I enjoy learning new things about all animals and applying what I learn to help others.

When you volunteer for a cat rescue, the season of spring is more commonly known as “Kitten Season”. This is the time of year that we begin getting phone calls asking us to take in pregnant or nursing moms and their litters of kittens. The more common call, however, is for “abandoned kittens.” I put quotes around it because more often than not the kittens aren’t really abandoned.

Unlike human children, who are rarely without a parent in sight, kittens can be left alone for hours at a time and the mom usually isn’t far off. In fact, mom may even be watching you. People often don’t realize this and tend to automatically assume that mom has left the litter to starve. They then decide to take things into their own hands and “help” which isn’t always in the best interest of the kittens.

How To Tell If Kittens Are Abandoned & Need Your Help

Unless the kittens are in immediate danger, don’t move them. Mom may just be out getting some dinner, or taking a break. (You’d need to take a breather too if you had so many babies at once!). If you have to move them, make sure it is nearby where mom can see or hear them calling for her.

Keep an eye on the nest from a distance for 12 to 18 hours to determine if they’re truly abandoned. Depending on how old the kittens are, moms can stay away for hours at a time. It can be hard to tell if mom slips in and out when you aren’t looking. A way to help tell if the mom has returned is to sprinkle flour around the area. If mom comes back she will leave paw prints in the powder.

Don’t be alarmed if some of the kittens go missing. This is probably a good sign. Active Moms will move their kittens from place to place if they feel they are in danger.

If hours pass and the babies are dirty, fussy and loud, it is safe to consider them abandoned. It’s important to remember to wait an appropriate amount of time and to stay calm. A lot of people panic and want to scoop the kittens up and care for them right away. However, caring for kittens, especially young ones that don’t eat solid food, is a lot of work that most people aren’t prepared to take on. It is also more dangerous for kittens growing up without a mom and the comfort and milk she provides. Whenever possible, keep mom in the picture.

What if Mom Doesn’t Return? What now?

If you have truly abandoned kittens, and you are not prepared to take on the responsibilities of motherhood, feel free to call your local rescues. Please keep in mind that kitten season is a very busy time of year. Rescues exhaust their resources very quickly and you may be declined. Fosters for bottle babies (kittens without mommas that cannot eat solid food yet) are always in short supply because they are a lot of work.

If you are able to foster the litter the rescues may have a waiting list that you can be put on to help your kittens and lighten your load.

Even if the rescues can’t take in your litter they may have tips and tricks to make your go at being a momma cat much easier.

This Kitten season, Please be patient and do what you can to help appropriately. While it’s hard to resist a pile of adorable, cuddly kittens, letting Mom handle their care is sometimes the best option.

Here at That Fish Place – That Pet Place – we always try to assist local rescues and pet organizations whenever we can. I have personally been on the forefront of this for the last few months in my position as the Local Community and Events Coordinator. There are a lot of rescues in and around Lancaster County. As a pet lover, chances are you are either involved with a rescue or you may know someone who is.

Promoting a rescue or other non-profits can be expensive – but it doesn’t have to be. There are many national event posting sites, as well as local Lancaster, Pennsylvania sites. Not from Lancaster Pennsylvania? Do a quick Google search using the keywords “Event posting sites” and your current location. It’s that easy! Below are 6 FREE ways that I have found to promote your rescues events online.

In order to promote an event on Yelp, you must first sign up as a business. Signing up for Yelp is absolutely free. Once you are signed up, you can add an event by simply clicking on the events tab and inputting the information. The advantage to using this site is that you can search for an event by category and locale. The other added bonus is that you can get feedback regarding your event if an attendee submits a review. This can help you plan future events.

Eventful is another site that is 100% free. You can create an account, or log in with your existing Facebook. Once you have added your event, you can add imagery. The added bonus by using Eventful is that each event can be tagged to up to three categories. The more categories selected, the more your event will populate when people search the website.

Event Brite is a great site to use if you like to keep track of how many people plan to attend your event. There is no charge for selling free tickets on Event Brite. Simply create an account, and add your event. You can use Event Brite for paid admission as well, with the option of deducting the transaction fee from each ticket or adding the fee to each ticket. The event is still free to post, and any transaction fee will get applied before deposit to your PayPal account. Attendees can use any major credit card. Event Brite would be a huge benefit to your large scale event.

Pennlive is an online distribution of the Patriot News, which is directed to Central Pa. Adding an event is simple and you do not have to create an account to do so. You can also link a previously posted event from another site (like Facebook) by adding the additional URL to your event submission.

360lancaster is another great event source. The process of entering the event is simple with your audience retaining to Lancaster County. Would you like to expand your audience? Check out 360York. The added bonus to this page, there is a Lancaster Nonprofit organization category. Thus making your event highlighted in one easy click.

Susquehanna Life makes it really easy to submit an event. Simply create an account or log in with one of four existing social accounts (Facebook, Google, Yahoo, or Windows live). The reach for your event is throughout Central Pa and Susquehanna. Event postings are free, and their customer service is amazing.

With all of these sources at your fingertips, why not take advantage? Our generations X ways are the things of yesterday. It is time to move it on up to the digital era. Personally, I could do without all of the paper cuts.

If you would like to know more about posting your event on any of these sites or if you have any questions about promoting your rescue please feel free to contact me at tries@thatpetplace.com. Thank you!

Have you ever lost a pet? Maybe your cat or dog slipped out an open door or through an open gate in your back yard? If you’ve ever experienced the panic and stress of a lost pet, then you may already know the importance of having some form of pet identification on your pet to help them find their way home to you! Accidents happen. Sometimes pets are scared, sometimes they’re curious, sometimes they just like to run. I used to have a “runner”. The Jack Russell would, upon seeing even a small chance to escape the house would seize the opportunity, running for miles through yards, across streets without a destination in mind, simply running to run and without desire to be captured or return. On more than one occasion I was able to pursue and capture my wiley pet, but there were one or two times when I returned to my home distraught after losing sight of him, thinking the worst that I might never see him again. Fortunately, he never went on a joy run without his collar, which not only held his license, but also a simple ID tag, etched with his name and my phone number…perhaps the best couple of bucks I spent since it was that little tag that brought my dog back to me.

Just a few minutes of your time and a few dollars from your wallet can mean the difference between losing a pet forever and having them home safe with you. Here are several methods of pet identification you can employ for the safety and security of your pet. You can use a single method, or better yet a combination of ID’s.

ID Tags and Collars

Perhaps the simplest and easiest method of ID is an etched or printed ID tag or collar. You can purchase a personalized tag or collar from any variety of retail or online sources. Many tags can be printed with several lines of text, so you can choose the info you would like to have displayed. Personalized accessories like these not only allow you to personalize your pet’s style, but also to supply them with a quickly visible and accessible means of identifying your pet and contacting you.

We’ve had our share of storms and rainy days in the Northeast so far this year, with more deluges in the forecast! Meteorologists and other media entities are quick to warn about the possibilities of flooding and other consequences of consistent rains, and they often give tips and pointers about how to stay safe if flooding should occur in your area. But what about your pets? What do you do to keep your pets safe and prepared in case severe storms, flash flooding or some other cause for evacuation should occur? It’s certainly best to plan ahead for a weather disaster, and with just a few simple steps you can have your pet prepared to deal with a variety of disasters sparing you both from possible heartache.

One of the simplest and most important things you can do for the safety of your pet, pending weather event or not, is to get them an ID. Whether it’s in the form of a metal dog tag, a tattoo, or an injected Microchip ID, these small applications can help to get your pet home if you should get separated for any reason. You can have a simple metal tag custom etched for a few dollars here at That Pet Place or at many other pet stores. I’ve even seen kiosks at places like Lowes and Wal-Mart. Tattoos (lifetime licenses) and micro-chips are permanent markers which can’t be lost if your pet loses his collar. Most shelters are equipped with a scanner, and one of the first actions is to check all animals for a microchip before they evaluated. Some shelters and vets offer micro-chipping and/or tattoo services, and micro-chipping clinics are popping up more and more, at very affordable prices. Read More »

No one wants to lose a pet, but sometimes in the hustle and bustle of daily life, a dog or cat can slip through the front door and vanish in seconds. It is a heart-wrenching situation, but there are some steps you can take to help your pet return home quickly and safely. I’ve only lost a pet once, my cat Bella many years ago, but I learned a lot from the situation.

If you saw your pet escape, grab a leash, your cell phone, and some tasty treats then head in the last direction you saw your pet running. I know my dogs love a good game of chase, so even though it is tempting in this stressful situation, don’t run towards your pet when you see him. I’ve found that I have the most success if I sit down on the ground, get in the ‘play bow’ position, or even start running in the opposite direction. They may become curious about your behavior and come to investigate. If you run the other way they may think that you are playing a fun game of chase. Don’t scold your dog if/when they come back to you. They won’t understand that you are scolding for running away, they will think they’re being punished for coming back! Read More »

Domesicated cats have a deeply rooted history in culture. Most of us are familiar with depictions and roles of ancient felines in Egyptian society, but did you know that cats were also prevalent in ancient Rome?

Domesticated cats were carried to Europe by Phoenician trade ships about 3000 years ago. This African subspecies mingled with European subspecies giving rise to the domestic cats we still keep today. There is some debate whether, in ancient times, cats were considered pests or prized predators. It is evident that these pets were valued for their hunting prowess, often tolerated for keeping rodent populations at bay and left free to roam temples and estates for the same reason. Roman soldiers transported cats on conquests to keep grain stores safe. There are also other positive associations of cats in lore that supports that they were more than just a presence, though not perhaps favored as pampered pets as much in Roman society as dogs, birds and other exotic pets at the time. Cats are associated with the goddesses Diana (goddess of the hunt) and Libertas (goddess of freedom). Regardless of how the Romans of that age felt about cats, their place in culture had been established. Read More »

“In speaking of his intelligence, my wife, who at heart was not a little tinctured with superstition, made frequent allusion to the ancient popular notion, which regarded all black cats as witches in disguise.”
– Edgar Allan Poe, “The Black Cat”

Have you ever visited a pet shelter or rescue and noticed that their resident pets were mostly dark in color? It probably wasn’t your imagination. The idea that black dogs and other dark colored pets remain in shelters longer, and are more often euthanized than pets of other colors, is debated by some. But people who volunteer, work in or run animal shelters can tell you that the seeming discrimination against black animals is a reality. The condition has been given a name–Black Dog Syndrome. Despite the gentle and loving personalities thes pets may have they are often passed over for others in the shelter, but why? Having known and lived with several inky-black cats and dogs, I can attest that each was as affectionate and sweet as their yellow, white, tan, brown or grey counterparts, maybe even more so. In fact, their satiny, glossy black coat may have even made them more appealing to me. So what causes these pets to be passed overin a shelter situation? Read More »

For many people the term “pit bull” typically brings several negative images immediately to mind. Images of a muscular dog on the end of a thick chain guarding a junkyard; a news report of a child being killed by a pack of ferocious dogs; the underbelly of the inner city where dog fighting rings play their disgusting games. “Pit Bulls” have earned a stigma as brutes, fighters, and even killers. I have to admit that if I were to come across the stereotypical “pit bull” in a dark alley, I would certainly be looking for the quickest way out of there. But, in my entire career in animal care, I have never come across a true pit bull, at least not the dog that fits that notorious label. Read More »

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